SC Supreme Court calls off hearing to disbar jailed, disgraced attorney Alex Murdaugh

The South Carolina Supreme Court has canceled a Wednesday morning disbarment hearing for disgraced attorney Alex Murdaugh.

The high court had summoned Murdaugh, who is in the Richland County jail on numerous financial fraud charges, to appear before it Wednesday morning to show cause for why he shouldn’t be disbarred.

But Murdaugh’s attorney Jim Griffin wrote the court Tuesday morning, telling it that Murdaugh waived his rights to a hearing, did not contest the court’s authority and decision to disbar him and was requesting the court to cancel the hearing.

“A formal decision as to disbarment will follow,” the court’s notice said.

No lawyer in similar circumstances has been summoned before the Supreme Court to explain why they shouldn’t be disbarred. Usually, the Supreme Court issues findings on disbarment through formal written orders.

Had the hearing taken place, Murdaugh — the once-proud fourth generation lawyer of a powerful Lowcountry legal family — would have appeared before the five black-robed justices wearing a jail jump suit with chains around his waist and ankles.

The justices had arranged a special transport van operated by the Richland County Sheriff’s Office to haul Murdaugh to the high court in downtown Columbia.

“It’s not something that Alex was looking forward to,” Griffin told The State.

This story was originally published June 21, 2022 at 5:08 PM.